Google Play

Looking for a Nexus 9 LTE? If you’re going to Google Play, you might be out of luck. The tablet is currently listed as “coming soon” via Google’s official device sales portal, but T-Mobile is here to rescue us from a tablet-less world. Starting today, T-Mobile will be selling the Nexus 9 LTE from their online “deals” site, The Underground. The Nexus 9 LTE isn’t cheap — it starts at $599 — but it’s really your only option if you want the connected Nexus tablet in time for the holidays.

Google’s Nexus might set the bar for Android, but it probably won’t be a gift you give or receive this holiday season. After a report Google was discontinuing their Nexus 5, Google confirmed it was still around — just on a sabbatical. Google says the Nexus 5 will be back next year, likely in January. With that, we’ve got little recourse for actually snapping up a Nexus smartphone right now, since both are out of stock via Google Play. If you were hoping to see a Nexus in someone’s hands this year, you might be out of luck.

The app you may have used for the past several years to access Amazon (outside of your web browser) has been axed from Google Play's app store. As was found earlier this year, Amazon updated their app to include app and game purchases and downloads - effectively making their app an app store within an app store. Google did not like that, and since have brought up a bit of a rule tweak on what should have otherwise banned the sales of apps within apps listed on Google Play.

With the changeover to Satya Nadella as CEO, Microsoft is shifting (pivoting, if you watch 'Silicon Valley') their structure. Instead of a stodgy PC OS maker, Microsoft is embracing mobile as best they can. After missing the boat with their failed OS attempts ahead of the new-look Windows Phones, losing more ground than they can likely make up to Apple and Android, Microsoft is instead supporting the platforms with services. To hit home even further they aren’t interested in hardware sales, Microsoft is making more Windows apps available for iOS and Android.

Streaming video is a proven winner, and just about everyone is getting in on the cable-cutting. Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Fire Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, and Android TV all vie for a place behind or next to your TV. All do about the same thing, too, in feeding you content via Netflix or a similar service. A new app on Google Play suggests Android TV may be trying to distance itself from the pack by offering up live content. Whether or not that will work is another matter entirely.

For the first time in the history of wearables, Google Play has its own wearables category for Android Wear - only it's not just dedicated to apps, it's made for watch faces. The "watch faces" category on Google Play will be launched today with dozens of "official" designer, artist, and brand-made watch faces for Android Wear devices. Google is also releasing new developer tools for Android Wear, including an official Watch Face API, so that additional watch faces can be made by all developers with great speed.

You know Nokia the handset maker, but are you familiar with Nokia the services provider? After dislodging their hardware division and shuffling it off toward Redmond and Microsoft, Nokia has become a services company first, hardware (distant) second. One of their more fascinating and profound services for consumers is HERE, a Maps app that is putting the rest of the world on notice. After a beta period meant for testing the app and finding bugs, HERE is now rolling out to Android users, and will challenge Google Maps in a significant way.

Following its recent changes to Search, Google has pulled a handful of piracy apps from the Play Store, citing violations of the company's Content Policy. The pulled apps are said to have offered optimized web experiences for using The Pirate Bay, and include the apps "The Pirate Bay Premium", "The Pirate Bay Proxy", "The Pirate Bay Mirror", and the "PirateApp". This is the latest Google effort to combat piracy and steer users towards legally obtained content.

The Google Play Store app is set to see an upgrade soon, and it’s going to be a good one. This time around, Android users will see a whole lot if Material Design. From shadows to animation, the experience is about to get a lot bolder and brighter across the board. There will also be a portal to manage your account much easier, and the ability to add or change payment options, buy/redeem Google Play credit, or use PayPal.

Do you even know what’s going on with Android? If you’re a new user, probably not. There are a lot of subtle tips and tricks for getting the most out of your Android handset, and Google is finally acknowledging it’s not easy to know what those are. A new app, Device Assist, has landed on the Play Store today, and helps users discover all the neat little ways they can make their device last longer and provide the info they want. Well, so long as you have a Google-y android handset, that is.